The net direct tax collection rose by a whopping 172% to R35,323 crore during April-May this year, compared to the corresponding period last fiscal. The rise in mop-up is mainly on account of slower disbursal of refunds.

According to sources, the income tax department issued refunds of R16,909 crore during the first two months of the fiscal, 55% lower than the year-ago period. Last year, there was a drive to issue most of the refunds in the early months which is not this year. However, refunds disbursal will increase in the coming months, an official said.

The corporate tax collection stood at R9,576 crore during April-May against minus R5,141 crore in the year-ago period, while personal income tax mop-up this year was R25,732 crore, up from R18,079 crore.

In the current financial year, the government has estimated to collect R5.70 lakh crore from direct taxes. It is around 15% more than the revised